Places are still available at a free conference aimed at addressing the important issue of young people’s employability skills in Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.
Event organisers, the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership and Destination Chesterfield, are appealing to representatives from education and businesses to attend the free conference, which is being held at Ringwood Hall, Ringwood Road, Brimington, Chesterfield (S43 1DQ) on Wednesday, October 19, from 8am to 10am.
The event follows the launch of the D2N2 Employability Framework at the 2015 Annual Conference of the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership (pictured); a private sector-led body which promotes economic growth and jobs creation across Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.
The Employability Framework – which is being delivered (with £300,000 in support) through the Government-backed Careers & Enterprise Company Enterprise Adviser Network, and D2N2 – seeks to address the mismatch between the employability skills that young people are leaving school with or receiving through post-16 training programmes, against those needed by regional employers.
While apprenticeship opportunities in the area have increased, a recent D2N2-commissioned study suggested more could be done by schools to promote apprenticeships to students, and to work with local providers and employers struggling to fill apprenticeship vacancies.
The increase in apprenticeship opportunities in the D2N2 area, but with less young people willing to fill them, coupled with the opening of the new University of Derby St. Helena Campus in Chesterfield – part-financed by £3.48million from D2N2’s Local Growth Fund allocation – has pushed employability skills to the top of the agenda in north Derbyshire.
The joint conference on October 19 will aim to build stronger links between schools and employers in the area, and help young people better realise their career potential.
David Ralph, Chief Executive of the D2N2 LEP, said: “Since its launch, we have been developing our D2N2 Employability Framework; supported by local businesses, schools and stakeholders. We are bringing schools and employers together, to help young people become better informed about the world of work and inspire them to make good decisions about their future careers.”
Gail Widerman, Director of Placing Futures Ltd, who is helping deliver D2N2’s Employability Framework, added: “We work with both schools and businesses, and more and more employers are telling us that they want work-ready young people. I am delighted that so many schools and businesses have come on board with Chesterfield’s first Employability Skills Conference, and are taking a joint approach to finding a solution and giving young people a very real future in industry.”
Dom Stevens, Destination Chesterfield Manager, commented: “With more than £1billion of investment happening in Chesterfield over the next ten years it is vital that our young people are work-ready and have the skills that employers want. Having a pool of work ready employees is one of the key reasons businesses invest in an area and create jobs. The conference is designed to bring together the education and business communities, and address the perceived and real skills gaps before they become an issue.”
To book online to attend the free Chesterfield Employability Conference go to web link www.chesterfield.co.uk/events/chesterfield-employability-conference
For more information about the D2N2 LEP’s Employability Framework go to www.d2n2lep.org/skills/employability-framework
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